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Stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard with many resorts, shows, and casinos From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about 4.2 mi (6.8 km) long,[1] and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city limits in the unincorporated towns of Paradise and Winchester, but is often referred to simply as "Las Vegas".
| The Strip Las Vegas Boulevard South | |
  .jpg) .jpg)   Clockwise from top: Las Vegas Boulevard, MGM Grand Las Vegas, New York-New York, The Venetian Las Vegas, Caesars Palace, Horseshoe Las Vegas & Paris Las Vegas, Bellagio | |
| Length | 4.2 mi (6.8 km) |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 36.119684°N 115.172599°W |
| South end | Russell Road |
| North end | Sahara Avenue |
Many of the largest hotel, casino, and resort properties in the world are on the Strip, known for its contemporary architecture, lights, and wide variety of attractions. Its hotels, casinos, restaurants, residential high-rises, entertainment offerings, and skyline have established the Strip as one of the most popular and iconic tourist destinations in the world and is one of the driving forces for Las Vegas's economy.[2] Most of the Strip has been designated as an All-American Road,[3] and the North and South Las Vegas Strip routes are classified as Nevada Scenic Byways and National Scenic Byways.[4]
Historically, casinos that were not in Downtown Las Vegas along Fremont Street sat outside the city limits on Las Vegas Boulevard.[5][6] In 1959, the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign was built[7] exactly 4.5 miles (7.2 km) outside the city limits. The sign is currently located in the median just south of Russell Road (which is 4.2 miles (6.8 km) from The Sahara.[8][9]), across from the location of the now-demolished Klondike Hotel and Casino and about 0.4 miles (0.64 km) south of the southernmost entrance to Mandalay Bay, which is the Strip's southernmost casino.
In the strictest sense, the Strip refers only to the stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard that is roughly between Sahara Avenue and the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign.[10][11] Clark County uses the phrase Resort Corridor to describe the area including Las Vegas Boulevard between 215 Beltway and Sahara Avenue and surrounding areas.[12]
The Sahara is considered the Strip's northern terminus by Clark County,[10] though travel guides typically extend it to the Strat 0.4 miles (0.64 km) to the north.[13][14][15] Mandalay Bay, just north of Russell Road is the southernmost resort considered to be on the Strip[13] (the Klondike was the southernmost until 2006, when it was closed, although it was not included in the Strip on some definitions and travel guides).[16] According to Clark County, the southern end of the Strip is the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign; the county acknowledges that some argue for Russell Road at the southernmost terminus.[10][17]
The first casino to be built on Highway 91 was the Pair-o-Dice Club in 1931, but the first full service casino-resort on what is currently called the Strip was the El Rancho Vegas, which opened with 63 bungalow hotel rooms on April 3, 1941. Its success spawned a second nearby hotel, the Hotel Last Frontier in 1942.[18][19] Organized crime figures such as Bugsy Siegel took an intense interest in the growing Las Vegas gaming center and funded another resort; financing the completion of the Flamingo construction with mob money. The Flamingo casino opened in December 1946, and the hotel opened in March 1947. Wilbur Clark's Desert Inn resort opened in 1950.[20] The funding for many Las Vegas projects was provided through the American National Insurance Company, which was based in the then-notorious gambling empire of Galveston, Texas.[21][22]
Las Vegas Boulevard South was previously called Hwy 91, or the Arrowhead Highway,[23] or Los Angeles Highway.[citation needed] The Strip was named by Los Angeles police officer and businessman Guy McAfee, after his hometown's Sunset Strip in Hollywood.[24]
In 1950, Mayor Ernie Cragin of the City of Las Vegas sought to annex the Las Vegas Strip, which ran through unincorporated Clark County territory, in order to expand the city's tax base to fund his ambitious building agenda and pay down the city's rising debt.[25] Instead, Gus Greenbaum of the Flamingo led a group of casino executives to lobby the Clark County commissioners for town status.[25] Two unincorporated towns were eventually created, Paradise and Winchester.[26][27] More than two decades later, the Supreme Court of Nevada struck down a 1975 Nevada state law that would have folded the Strip and the rest of the urban areas of Clark County into the City of Las Vegas.[28]
Caesars Palace was established in 1966. Opening in 1969, the International Hotel, with 1,512 rooms, began the era of mega-resorts. The International is known as Westgate Las Vegas today.
The first MGM Grand Hotel and Casino opened in 1973 with 2,084 rooms. On November 21, 1980, MGM Grand suffered the worst resort fire in the history of Las Vegas as a result of electrical problems, killing 87 people. It reopened eight months later. In 1986, Kerkorian sold the MGM Grand to Bally Manufacturing, and it was renamed Bally's.
The opening of The Mirage in 1989 set a new level to the Las Vegas experience, as smaller hotels and casinos made way for the larger mega-resorts.[29] Some of the key features of The Mirage included tropical landscapes with waterfalls, an erupting volcano, restaurants with world-class chefs, and a show with illusionists Siegfried & Roy.[30] In the 1990s, more than 12 new hotels opened, including themed hotels like the Luxor, Excalibur, and Mandalay Bay.[31] At $1.7B, the most expensive hotel in the world at the time, The Bellagio, was built in the 1990s.[31] These huge facilities offer entertainment and dining options, as well as gambling and lodging. In 1993, the launch of the Mystère show at the new Treasure Island hotel by Cirque du Soleil marked a key point in transforming Las Vegas Strip entertainment.[20]
In an effort to attract families, resorts offered more attractions geared toward youth, but had limited success.[32] The Wet 'n Wild water park opened in 1985 and was located on the south side of the Sahara hotel.[33] It closed at the end of the 2004 season and was later demolished.[34] The current MGM Grand opened in 1993 with MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park, but the park closed in 2000 due to lack of interest.[35] Similarly, in 2003 Treasure Island closed its own video arcade and abandoned the previous pirate theme, adopting the new ti name.[36]
In addition to the large hotels, casinos and resorts, the Strip is home to many attractions, such as M&M's World, Adventuredome and the Fashion Show Mall.
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With the opening of Bellagio, Venetian, Palazzo, Wynn and Encore resorts, the Strip trended towards the luxurious high-end segment through most of the 2000s, while some older resorts added major expansions and renovations, including some de-theming of the earlier themed hotels.[37][38] High end dining, specialty retail, spas and nightclubs increasingly became options for visitors in addition to gambling at most Strip resorts.[39][40][41] There was also a trend towards expensive residential condo units on the Strip.[42]
In 2004, MGM Mirage announced plans for CityCenter, a 66-acre (27 ha), $7 billion multi-use project on the site of the Boardwalk hotel and adjoining land. It consists of hotel, casino, condo, retail, art, business and other uses on the site. Most elements of the project opened in late 2009.
In 2012, the High Roller Ferris wheel and a retail district called The Linq Promenade broke ground in an attempt to diversify attractions beyond that of casino resorts. Renovations and rebrandings such as The Cromwell Las Vegas and the SLS Las Vegas continued to transform the Strip in 2014. The Las Vegas Festival Grounds opened in 2015. In 2016, T-Mobile Arena, The Park, and the Park Theater (now known as Dolby Live) opened.[citation needed]
On October 1, 2017, a mass shooting occurred on the Strip at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival, adjacent to the Mandalay Bay hotel. 60 people were killed, and approximately 867 were injured. The gunman, Stephen Paddock, opened fire on concertgoers with several rifles from his suites on the Mandalay Bay's 32nd floor. Paddock's motive was never determined, and he committed suicide after the massacre. It was the deadliest mass shooting in modern United States history.[43][44][45]
In 2018, the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino was renamed the Park MGM and in 2019, the SLS changed its name back to Sahara Las Vegas.[46][47]
In 2021, the Pinball Hall of Fame moved near the "Fabulous Las Vegas" sign at the south end of the Strip.[48] Later that year, Resorts World Las Vegas, opened on the site of the former Stardust Resort and Casino.[49] Resorts World incorporates portions of a previously planned resort known as Echelon Place, which was canceled in 2008.[50]
In 2022, Bally's was renamed the Horseshoe Las Vegas.[51]
The Sphere venue opened in 2023.[52] Also, the Fontainebleau Las Vegas opened on the site of the former El Rancho Hotel and Casino and Algiers Hotel.[53]
The Tropicana closed in April 2024 and was demolished in October 2024. It will be replaced with a new Bally's Las Vegas resort[54] and New Las Vegas Stadium which will become the home of the Oakland Athletics after they relocate to Las Vegas.[55][56] The Mirage also closed in July 2024.[57]
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Dream Las Vegas, a casino and 20-story boutique hotel next to Harry Reid International Airport began construction in 2022 for an opening originally scheduled for 2024.[59] Construction was halted in March 2023 due to stalled funding plans.[60] It could resume construction in January 2024 and the opening has been rescheduled to the end of 2025.[61]
Astral Hotels planned to start building Astral, a 34-story, 620-room hotel and casino on the southern Las Vegas Strip, but the project is delayed.[62]
In 2022, businessman Tilman Fertitta received approval to eventually build a 43-story resort at the southeast corner of Harmon Avenue.[63][64]
RTC Transit (previously Citizens Area Transit, or CAT) provides bus service on the Strip with double decker buses known as The Deuce.[65] The Deuce runs between the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign and South Strip Transfer Terminal to the Bonneville Transit Center (BTC) and the Fremont Street Experience in Downtown Las Vegas, with stops near every casino.
Several free trams operate between properties on the west side of the Strip:[66]
While not on the Strip itself, the Las Vegas Monorail runs a 3.9-mile route on the east side of the Strip corridor from Tropicana Avenue to Sahara Avenue, with stops every 4 to 8 minutes at several on-Strip properties including the MGM Grand and the Sahara at each end of the route.[67][68] The stations include:[68]
The monorail began operating in 1995 with two trains from Walt Disney World.[69] In 2020, the monorail was acquired by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA).[70]
Tens of thousands of pedestrians are walking along the Strip at any given time.[71] As of 2019, about 50,000 pedestrians walked the Strip on an average day.[72]
In the 1990s, several pedestrian footbridges were erected over Las Vegas Boulevard to increased pedestrian safety and alleviate traffic congestion at popular intersections. The first was the Tropicana – Las Vegas Boulevard footbridge.[73][74] Some mimic the theme of nearby resorts.[citation needed].[75][76] The footbridges include:[77]
Pedestrians have complained that they must walk as much as a quarter-mile to reach a footbridge or intersection to cross the street.[78]
After a driver drove into pedestrians on the sidewalk in front of Paris Las Vegas and Planet Hollywood in December 2015, 800 bollards began to be installed on Las Vegas Blvd. starting in 2017.[79][80] The construction of the bollards resulted in the removal of 49 of the 82 stars of the Las Vegas Walk of Stars.[81] In 2019, the bollards on Las Vegas Blvd. were shortened after drivers complained that they were obstructing street views.[82] 283 of the 4,500 bollards will be shortened from 54 inches to 36 inches.[83] The shortened bollards line 20 driveways.[84]
Studies conducted by Clark County in 2012 and 2015 identified issues with congestion.[85][86] The studies resulted in $5 million of improvements, including LED lights, ADA ramps, containment fencing, widening sidewalks, and removing permanent obstructions, such as signs, signposts, trash cans, and fire hydrants.[85][86] The studies also identified non-permanent obstructions causing congestion, such as street performers, vendors, handbillers, sign-holders, and illegal street gambling.[86] Modifications to non-obstruction zones and increased enforcement were implemented in order to reduce congestion.[86]
Taxis are available at resorts, shopping centers, attractions, and for scheduled pickups.[87] The Nevada Taxicab Authority provides information about taxi fares and fare zones.[88] In 2021, there was an increase in taxi passengers due to declines in rideshare drivers and rideshare surge pricing.[89][90]
Rideshare services, including Uber and Lyft, are available on the Strip.[91]
In 2019, about eight in ten (81%) visitors said they gambled while in Las Vegas, the highest proportion in the past five years.[92] The average time spent gambling, 2.7 hours, represents an increase over the past three years.[92] Also, the average trip gambling budget, $591.06, was increased from 2018.[92] About nine in ten (89%) visitors who gambled did so on the Strip Corridor.[92] UNLV reported that in 2019, Big Las Vegas Strip Casinos (defined as Strip casinos with more than $72M in annual gaming revenues) had more than $6B in annual gaming revenues, corresponding to about 26% of total annual revenues.[93]
From the time period spanning 1985 to 2019, there have been some changes in the mix of table games in casinos on the Strip:[94]
Casino operators have been expanding sports betting facilities and products, as well as renovating and upgrading equipment and facilities.[95] Although sports betting has a relatively low margin, the high-end sportsbooks can generate significant amounts of revenue in other areas, such as food and drink.[95] As a result, sportsbooks have been expanding and upgrading food and drink offerings.[96] High-end sportsbooks include features such as single-seat stadium-style seating, large high-definition screens, a dedicated broadcast booth, and the ability to watch up to 15 sporting events at once.[95][97] The sports network ESPN is broadcasting sports betting shows from a dedicated studio at The Linq.[97] Some sportsbooks are now offering self-service betting kiosks.[98]
The Las Vegas Strip is known for its lounges, showrooms, theaters and nightclubs,[99] most on the hotel casino properties. Some of the more popular free attractions visible from the Strip include the water fountains at Bellagio, the volcano at The Mirage, and the Fall of Atlantis and Festival Fountain at Caesars Palace. There are several Cirque du Soleil shows, such as Kà at the MGM Grand, O at Bellagio, Mystère at Treasure Island, and Michael Jackson: One at Mandalay Bay.[100]
Many notable artists have performed in Las Vegas, including Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Wayne Newton, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Rod Stewart and Liberace,[101] and in more recent years Celine Dion, Britney Spears, Barry Manilow, Cher, Elton John, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Donny and Marie Osmond, Garth Brooks, Jennifer Lopez, Reba McEntire, Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson, Kylie Minogue, Shania Twain, Criss Angel, Olivia Newton-John, Queen + Adam Lambert, Lady Gaga, and Gwen Stefani have had residencies in the various resorts on the Strip. The only movie theatre directly on the Strip was the 10-screen Regal Showcase Theatre in the Showcase Mall. The theater opened in 1997 and was operated by Regal Entertainment Group,[102] until its closure in 2018.[103] During 2019, 51% of visitors attended shows, which was down from 2015, 2017, and 2018.[104] Among visitors who saw shows, relatively more went to Broadway/production shows than in past years, while relatively fewer saw lounge acts, comedy shows, or celebrity DJs.[104]
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Numerous entertainment venues populate the Strip. Most of the resorts have a showroom, nightclub and/or live music venue on the property and a few have large multipurpose arenas. Major venues include:
The Strip is populated with many restaurants and fine dining establishments, many of which are inside the casinos and resorts. In recent years, many celebrity chefs have opened restaurants along the Strip, including Wolfgang Puck, Michael Mina, Gordon Ramsay,[105] Guy Savoy,[106] and Joël Robuchon.[107]
Professional sports are found at venues on or near the Strip, including:[111]
The Strip also hosts the Las Vegas Grand Prix which has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 2023.[112] It will also house the New Las Vegas Stadium for the Oakland Athletics in 2028 when the team relocates to the Las Vegas Valley.[113]
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The Aladdin had a nine-hole golf course in the 1960s.[114] As land values on the Strip have increased over the years, the resort-affiliated golf courses have been removed to make way for building projects.[115] The Tropicana Country Club closed in 1990[116] and the Dunes golf course in the mid-90s. Steve Wynn, founder of previously owned Mirage Resorts, purchased the Desert Inn and golf course for his new company Wynn Resorts and redeveloped the course as the Wynn Golf Club. This course closed in 2017, but the development planned for the course was cancelled and the course was renovated and re-opened in late 2019.[117] In 2000, Bali Hai Golf Club opened just south of Mandalay Bay and the Strip.[118] In 2016, a TopGolf opened near the Strip.[119]
Adventuredome indoor amusement park at Circus Circus on the Strip is a major tourist attraction;[120] it is enclosed in glass, with a carousel, mini-golf, two roller coasters, bowling, spinning rides, an arcade, virtual reality rides, a carnival midway, and clown shows.[120]
The Stratosphere tower has several rides:
Other rides on the Strip include:
Although the Strip has elaborate displays, fountains, and large buffet restaurants, many of the hotel resort properties are renowned for their sustainability efforts, including:[121][122]
Renewable energy is generated and used on the Strip.[121] MGM initiated solar power when it built a solar array on top of the Mandalay Bay in 2014 and expanded it in 2016.[121][123] The solar array at the Mandalay Bay, a 28-acre system capable of powering 1,300 homes, is one of the largest commercial rooftop solar arrays in the United States.[124] The solar array includes more than 26,000 solar panels capable of providing a total of 8.3 megawatts DC (6.5 megawatts AC), sufficient for powering 25% of the Mandalay Bay campus.[125]
Energy-efficient buildings are also being implemented and the Strip has one of the highest concentrations of LEED-certified buildings in the world.[121][126] Some examples of LEED-certified buildings are the Octavius Tower at Caesars Palace and the Linq Promenade, both of which are certified LEED Silver.[121]
| North towards Fremont Street
↑ | ||
| Vegas World/Million Dollar Casino | Las Vegas Boulevard | |
| Jackpot Casino/Money Tree Casino | Holy Cow/Foxy's Firehouse | |
| Sahara Avenue | Sahara Avenue | |
| El Rancho Vegas | Club Bingo/SLS | |
| Wet 'n Wild | ||
| Thunderbird/Silverbird/El Rancho, Algiers Hotel | ||
| Riviera | ||
| Westward Ho | La Concha Motel | |
| Silver City/Riata | ||
| Stardust/Royal Nevada | ||
| Desert Inn Road | Desert Inn Road | |
| Silver Slipper/Golden Slipper | ||
| New Frontier/Last Frontier/Frontier | Desert Inn | |
| Spring Mountain Road | Sands Avenue | |
| Sands | ||
| Mirage/Castaways | Nob Hill Casino | |
| Holiday Casino, Holiday Inn | ||
| Flamingo Capri/Imperial Palace/Quad | ||
| O'Sheas Casino | ||
| Barbary Coast/Bill's | ||
| Flamingo Road | Flamingo Road | |
| Dunes | MGM Grand/Bally's | |
| Aladdin/Tallyho/King's Crown | ||
| Boardwalk/Mandarin Oriental | ||
| Monte Carlo | Harmon Avenue | |
| Marina | ||
| Tropicana Avenue | Tropicana Avenue | |
| Tropicana | ||
| Las Vegas Village | ||
| Hacienda | ||
| Russell Road | Glass Pool Inn | |
| Klondike/Kona Kai | ||
| ↓
South towards Interstate 215 | ||
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